If you have ever picked your own summer berries, you know it’s such a fun experience, and the memories last a lifetime! Everything comes together: the weather, the location, the flavors! Do you know what berries are popular in Poland?

The range of berries available in Poland is pretty big! My mouth waters just thinking about it…Starting in May Polish streets, markets and homes are filled with fresh strawberries. June, July and August, raspberries and sweet or sour cherries come into the mix. Blueberries, blackberries, gooseberries and black, red and white currants are also very popular. I grew up  on a fruit farm in Poland and it is the sweetest time of the year!

Of course you probably think this is like heaven, to live on a fruit farm. It really is, except that it also is a lot of work, all summer long!

What are the most popular berries in Poland? Let’s see…😋

 

Strawberries – Truskawki

Dark red and sweet, they are the perfect companion to a number of desserts and even sweet main courses. Poles use them as a pierogi filling, in smoothies and shakes and in a very popular Polish kompot…

 

Wild strawberries – Poziomki

These are amazing – so sweet and delicate! In Poland they grow in open fields, forests, meadows. They look like tiny strawberries. They are difficult to grow, so if you ever happen to find them, consider yourself lucky and simply enjoy them without adding anything…

 

Sweet cherries – Czereśnie

These come in different colors – red, orange, yellow, pink…They are sweet and delicious! I remember spending afternoons up on a cherry tree: this was my lunch or snack time!

 

Sour cherries – Wiśnie

I have to admit I never found these here in USA…My parents grow a lot of them on the farm though. Sour cherries are usually smaller and darker than sweet cherries. And of course a little tart, with the sweet aftertaste. Sour cherry is one of the Polish superfoods with the large content of antioxidants. They are great in pies, pastries, compotes and…Poles make a liquor from them (wiśniówka)! And of course, they are perfect straight from the tree!

 

Raspberries – Maliny

These are so good, but not the easiest to pick. Maliny’s bushes have tiny thorns, so you have to be careful. They make excellent jams and jellies and are great in cakes and pies as well.

 

Currants – Porzeczki

There are 3 different types of them: red (czerwone porzeczki), black (czarne porzeczki) or white (białe porzeczki). The white ones are more of a yellowish white color. Their taste differ, all of them are rather sour. Interesting fact: black currants contain 3 times more vitamin C than lemons!. Because of this, they are great natural remedy for cold: most of people in Poland have a jar of jam or something similar made out of them during cold winter months.

My parents grew all 3 of them on our farm and the red ones were my favorite!

 

Blackberries – Jeżyny

It is another superfood you can find in Poland. They are delicious forest berries that will perfectly decorate every summer dessert.

 

Bilberry – Jagody/Borówki

You will recognize the phrase: “Na jagody”...(going bilberry foraging) – it is used in every day life, and in poetry (think, Adam Mickiewicz, Maria Konopnicka). I remember these trips to the forest with the family. As you know, the fruit is so little, it takes forever to fill your container…Well, most of us, kids, were just interested in eating them, not really contributing to full containers.

Jagody are used mostly in desserts, especially in breakfast pastries (jagodzianki), pies, cakes, I absolutely love them in breakfast muesli, this fruit is just so yummy…

In Poland containers that are used for most of the berries are called “łubianki” (łubianka – singular). Once traditional units of measurements, the words are now used almost exclusively to describe these rectangular fruit baskets.

 

These are probably the most popular berries you can find in Poland. which one is your favorite? I have to say that strawberries are my number 1!